Black Christmas (1974) Blu-ray Disc 11/11/2008

[It's me, Billy]

http://www.thehdroom.com/news/The_Or..._November/3256

Retailers are reporting Koch Releasing has scheduled the original 1974 Black Christmas for a Blu-ray Disc treatment on November 11. Black Christmas is directed by Bob Clark who passed away a little over a year ago. He's otherwise known as the director of classics Porky's and A Christmas Story.

This version is not to be confused with the (inferior) 2006 remake with Lacey Chabert. That version has already been released on HD DVD by Genius Products and is expected to eventually appear on Blu-ray as well.
Black Christmas on Blu-ray carries an SRP of $29.98. Check back regularly for high resolution cover art, disc specs and pre-order information.

Great news, huh? We get The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) on Blu-ray on September 30th and now Black Christmas (1974) on Blu-ray on November 11th. And even though it's disliked by many, I really love the 2006 remake of Black Christmas too. It's inferior to the 1974 original, yes, but it's very stylish, beautifully photographed, and a lot of fun. I've got it on DVD and HD DVD and I'll be sure to get the Blu-ray of it too whenever it's released.

[indiephantom]

Originally Posted by It's me, Billy

http://www.thehdroom.com/news/The_Or..._November/3256



Great news, huh? We get The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) on Blu-ray on September 30th and now Black Christmas (1974) on Blu-ray on November 11th. And even though it's disliked by many, I really love the 2006 remake of Black Christmas too. It's inferior to the 1974 original, yes, but it's very stylish, beautifully photographed, and a lot of fun. I've got it on DVD and HD DVD and I'll be sure to get the Blu-ray of it too whenever it's released.

Count me in. In fact...I love the remake and I agree it looks beautiful. That director did another remake I enjoyed, Willard. I've noticed that most of the HD-DVD titles that were not BD are making there way over to the format, so I wouldn't be surprised if the remake did soon.

[SaviniFan]

I'll wait for reviews of the picture quality of the original before buying it for the 3rd time on blu. I love the film but I need to know if the upgrade will be worth it over the last SE.

[eric_angelus]

When I first got my TV, this was running in HD on the MOJO Channel fairly often and it looked great. The print was not pristine...but still the best the movie has ever looked. Not sure if this will be what is released on blu, but I can't wait for this release!

[killit]

yes, I would live this and the remake on blu, finally some good titles. The shit they release on blu back catalog blows

[Reverenddave]

I love my HD-DVD of the remake. The colors really pop off the screen. One of my favorite HD-DVDs.

Can't wait for the original on BR. I'll be pre-ordering that one.

[Shannafey]

I just bought the SE DVD and it looks like crap. I don't have a Blu Ray player to upgrade the Disc, but I would hope they put some time into the new transfer, if they are going to HD with it!

[othervoice1]

Sounds good- I like the original- thought the remake was one of the worst horror flicks I had ever seen (okay maybe im stretching it with movies like The Howling New Moon Rising out there)

[fattyjoe37]

Originally Posted by othervoice1

Sounds good- I like the original- thought the remake was one of the worst horror flicks I had ever seen (okay maybe im stretching it with movies like The Howling New Moon Rising out there)

Yeah, I don't get the remake love. Glen Morgan (the director) is someone I greatly admire because he wrote many great X-Files episodes and directed Willard, the only recent remake which I think improved on the original. But I hated his Black Christmas redux and would put it with the Wicker Man as the worst of the recent remakes.

Picking this up. Also looking for the remake to hit Blu-ray too.

[Shannafey]

I actually liked the remake as well, but then again, I had never seen the original when I watched it, so I look at them as 2 separate but equally enjoyable films.

[Ash28M]

Here is little tidbit I found over at highdefdigest.com from Dan at itsmebilly.com

Hey all,

New to the forum, but thought you might like to see what we have done with Black Christmas for this years upcoming Blu Ray release.

The image is a full 1080P transfer and we have done some colour correction to get rid of the previous editions Blu Hue from damaged negs. The detail is much much clearer now but be prepared for some film grain. Visible for the first time in Black Christmas. (i actually like grain) There is no DNR at all. This is basically what the print looks like.

On the left is a grab from the standard dvd and on the right is a 100% crop from a section of the image. Its a little grainy at 100% like this but moving on the big screen looks amazing !!!

I watched the whole movie through a few nights ago and it was my best viewing experience to date - and that also beats several theatrical screenings of bad prints over the years including Tarantinos own 35mm print....

As a comparison - its similar to the quality of the recent Anchor Bay Halloween during the dark scenes.

Anyway - hope you like the difference. For a Black Christmas fan the difference is vast !!! granted its no Iron Man transfer lol, but sadly just like me this movie is 35 years old .. and we are both feeling our age..lol

regards
Dan
itsmebilly.com
The Black Christmas Website

DVD


Blu Ray


Main Menu

[It's me, Billy]

Check out the awesome 'final' cover art for the BD. Dan posted it at http://www.itsmebilly.com

Correction: It looks as though this new cover may be a Canadian exclusive. The Canadian BD is being released on December 2nd and a new DVD is also being released in Canada (apparently with this same new cover) on November 18th. US retailers are still showing a November 11th release date for the BD - probably with the same ugly cover from the 2006 SE DVD.

PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 17, 2008


Christmas is coming early this year and it’s murder.

CRiTiCAL MASS Releasing Inc. and
Anchor Bay Entertainment Canada Present

Black Christmas

On DVD November 18, 2008

He sees you when you’re sleeping, he knows when you’re awake…


(TORONTO, ON) – Critical Mass Releasing Inc. has engaged Anchor Bay Entertainment Canada, a leader in the horror genre, as its exclusive service agent in Canada to distribute Black Christmas in the Canadian home video market. The DVD will be released November 18, 2008 with the Blu-ray edition to follow December 2.

The college town of Bedford is receiving an unwelcome guest this Christmas. As the residents of sorority house Pi Kappa Sig prepare for the festive season, a
demonic stranger begins to stalk the house. A series of grisly obscene
phone-calls start to plague the residents of the sorority and soon they will each meet their fate at the hands of the psychotic intruder. As the Police try to trace the calls, they discover that nothing is as it seems during this Black Christmas.

Black Christmas (1974) is a chilling and well-crafted slasher film by the late Bob Clark (Children Shouldn’t Play With Dead Things, Deathdream, Christmas Story, Porky’s). This classic horror title is considered by genre connoisseurs to be the greatest horror film to come out of Canada and the movie proved to be a huge influence on the slasher films (such as Halloween) that followed it. Black Christmas stands up as an innovative film today and stars John Saxon, Olivia Hussey, Keir Dullea, Margot Kidder, Art Hindle and Andrea Martin.

This release features great new packaging and 2 hours of bonus material:

• Supervised by “Überfan” Dan Duffin, creator of the “ItsMeBilly.com”website.
• Digitally re-mastered anamorphic video & newly created 5.1 Surround soundtrack.
• Two recently uncovered original scenes with an updated vocal track.
• The “12 Days of Black Christmas”, a documentary featuring current interviews
with Art Hindle, Doug McGrath & Lynne Griffin among others.
• Individual interviews with Olivia Hussey, Art Hindle and Margot Kidder.
• Midnight Screening Q&A session with John Saxon, Bob Clark, & Carl Zittrer.
• A set of 4 Black Christmas cards and envelopes.

The release of a Blu-ray edition of Black Christmas will follow on December 2 and contain the same bonus features listed above.

Also on DVD November 18, 2008 for the first time in Canada, Murder By Decree (1979) is a masterful suspense thriller directed by Bob Clark that both fans and critics have called the most exciting and original Sherlock Holmes movie ever made.

In 1888 London, Sherlock Holmes (Christopher Plummer) and Doctor Watson (James Mason) are on the case of the infamous serial murderer Jack the Ripper. The brilliant pair follow a terrifying trail of clues that include a frightened psychic (Donald Sutherland), a suspicious inspector (David Hemmings), an institutionalized woman (Genevieve Bujold) and the prime minister of England (Sir John Gielgud). But even if Holmes and Watson’s remarkable powers of deduction can unmask the maniacal fiend, are they prepared to face the most shocking secret of all?

Bonus features included with this release:

• Audio commentary with Co-Producer/Director Bob Clark
• Theatrical Trailer
• Behind-The-Scenes Still Gallery
• Poster and Still Gallery
• Talent Bios
• DVD-ROM: Original Screenplay

About CRiTiCAL MASS Releasing Inc.
CRiTiCAL MASS Entertainment (CME) ( HYPERLINK "http://www.cmass.ca" http://www.cmass.ca) was founded in 1998 and is comprised of CRiTiCAL MASS Releasing Inc., CRiTiCAL MASS Productions and CRiTiCAL MASS Multimedia. Together they create a strong entity in the international entertainment industry. CME founder William Alexander has worked for over 20 years in entertainment sales and distribution.

About Anchor Bay Entertainment
Anchor Bay Entertainment is the home entertainment division of Starz Media, LLC. It includes the Anchor Bay Films and Manga Entertainment brands. It distributes feature films, children’s entertainment, fitness, TV series, documentaries, anime and other filmed entertainment on DVD and Blu-ray formats. Headquartered in Burbank, CA, Anchor Bay Entertainment has offices in Troy, MI, as well as Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia. Starz Media ( HYPERLINK "http://www.starzmedia.com/" \o "http://www.starzmedia.com/" www.starzmedia.com) is a controlled subsidiary of Liberty Media Corporation attributed to the Liberty Capital Group.

[dickieduvet]

I hope to God that the Canadian release is region free. It belongs in all our HD collections.

[Body Boy]

Oh! Do you have a Region 2 DVD Player? That sucks. The cover art alone makes this a worthy buy.